Nash felt 'jittery' before NZ comeback
From The Press, January 7, 1998

Mount Gambier: Former bowling star Dion Nash admits that he was a little jittery about coming back into the New Zealand cricket team after a two-year absence, when he was called up for the second half of the one-day international series in Australia.

The 26-year-old has not played for his country since the series against the West Indies in 1996 - having taken nearly that long to overcome a back injury.

With a new coach, new captain, and many new players, Nash was unsure what to expect.

"I was really nervous about it to be honest,'' Nash said.

"There are a lot of new faces - a lot of these young guys I haven't even played against, let alone with.

"But I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to slot back in. This is a really jovial, happy team with great team spirit.''

However, Nash will not be entirely happy until he has proved himself on the field.

"You never really feel comfortable until you've performed well and won the respect of your team-mates and peers and that's what I have to do next.''

Through a carefully-planned fitness regime, which includes ballet exercises to strengthen his abdominal, back, and backside muscles, Nash believes he can now manage'' his injury, a bulging disc in his lower back.

"I get a bit of a hard time about the ballet exercises, but it's done a lot of good. I've strengthened my stomach, back, and butt - which are the key muscles for a fast bowler - and I've improved my flexibility,'' he said.

"The injury I've got is not going to go away, it's just a matter of managing it.''

That means limiting his workload, especially in net sessions where he wants "short and sharp'' bowling stints rather than the endless slog that is often the fate of fast bowlers who are required to serve up practice deliveries for their batsmen.

Nash, who stopped bowling altogether last season, now classes himself as an all-rounder in a team already brimming with them.

"Last season I played as a specialist batsman, coming in at No. 5 or No. 6 for Northern Districts and scored a few runs,'' Nash said of his 248 runs at an average of 24.80 in six Shell Trophy games.

After his batting success, he felt some disappointment at coming in at No. 9 against South Australia on Sunday night.

Nash said batting so low was one of the hardest jobs in one-day cricket.

"It's quite hard batting at No. 9 because you usually come in needing to score eight runs an over off two or three overs if your team's in trouble,'' he said.

New Zealand will have a practice match in Sydney today against coach Steve Rixon's former club side Sutherland before heading to Brisbane to play South Africa in a day-nighter on Friday.

-NZPA

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